Why is Mary called ‘Queen of Heaven’?

It’s a theological truth many Protestants reject and those who convert to Catholicism still struggle with accepting at the beginning of their conversion. At least, it was for me. However, if we are honest with ourselves, it’s also a truth most Catholics likely would not be able to explain to someone who does not believe it. It’s something most of us take as truth because the Church teaches it as such. But, can we explain where the Church got the theology from to a Protestant or non-Catholic? Let’s look at where the idea of the Blessed Mother being “Queen of Heaven” originates and, to the Protestant’s surprise, like most Catholic truths it originates in Sacred Scripture.

The great St. Augustine once said the New Testament is concealed in the Old Testament and the Old Testament is revealed in the New. With this idea in mind, let’s turn to the Old Testament to see why Mary is the Queen of Heaven as it is foreshadowed in the Old. Additionally, we will see the revealing of Mary as Queen Mother in the New Testament.

In I Kings 1:28-30 we see King David call Bathsheba to his presence. Bathsheba is Solomon’s mother and although she grew up in humble circumstances and was not born into royalty like many mothers of Old Testament kings, she gave birth to a great king. Sound familiar? We can parallel that with the Blessed Mother in the New Testament who did not come from a royal family and certainly was anything but wealthy. She was, however, humble and submissive to the will of God. She gave birth to a great king as well. She gave birth to the King of all Kings.

King David tells Bathsheba in I Kings 1 that Solomon will replace him as king. Bathsheba would automatically be aware that she would soon be the mother of the king and, as a result, take her place as queen. Kings in Old Testament days had their mother as queen because they only had one mother but, for most, the kings often had multiple wives so it was impossible for the wife to be queen when there were multiple wives.

“This very day I will fulfill the oath I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, that your son Solomon should reign after me and should sit upon my throne in my place.” – I Kings 1:30

What happens when Solomon becomes king? Bathsheba takes her spot as queen.

“Then Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah, and the king stood up to meet her and paid her homage. Then he sat down upon his throne, and a throne was provided for the king’s mother, who sat at his right.” – I Kings 2:19

It was custom in the Old Testament days, just as it is today, to pay homage by standing up in the presence of a king or queen and bowing before them. Think about Queen Elizabeth in Britain. When she enters the room, those in attendance stand up to show her honor and respect as royalty. They pay her homage. It is also reported that even the royal family stands up for the queen when she enters to have a meal with the family. When individuals, even if they were summoned by the king, came into the presence of King Solomon they would have shown him honor by standing and bowing. Anything less than that could have certainly resulted in that individual’s execution. However, King Solomon does the reverse. He stands and bows to his mother as opposed to having her bow before him. This is a gesture of respect, honor, and recognizing one’s authority and royalty. He did not stop at that gesture. He commanded her to be given the highest place of honor he could possibly bestow on her. He gave her a throne seated at his right hand.

Remember in Mark 10:35-45 when St. James and St. John began advocating for their royal spots in Jesus’ kingdom? They approached Jesus and asked him to give them the seats at his right hand and at his left. They knew it was a place of honor and power. They knew that was the seat they wanted in what they may have believed was an earthly royal kingdom.

When Bathsheba takes her throne beside her son, she begins to speak to Solomon for Adonijah. This, according to many theologians, is not necessarily a desire for Solomon to grant the request as much as it was to expose the evil plot of Adonijah to the king. The king does not just ignore Bathsheba, but he listened to her intercession. He considered everything she had requested. It is important to note that Bathsheba was not granted the request she made to the king, but he did, in fact, listen to her and made a judgment as to what was best. The taking of a king’s concubine was an attempt to overthrow the king and take the throne. Adonijah was putting the queen up to trying to work with him to overthrow her own son. If the request was granted then Adonijah could make the next moves needed to remove Solomon from the throne and take it himself. It is obvious that even Adonijah, with his satanic and evil plots and schemes, recognized the power and position the queen had before the king. Perhaps he was thinking “if anyone can get him to grant this easily then it is her.” Bathsheba discerned the evil plot to claim the royal throne from her son and, rather than approaching Solomon and telling what is going on, she allows him to determine what was happening simply by the requests she made. Solomon knew his mother would not want him removed from the throne and knew the requests she was asking would lead to such an event. As a result, he denied her request and had his adversary put to death. In this way, she protected her son’s royal position and his kingdom.

Mary also plays a vital role in protecting her son and his kingdom. She rushed off with Joseph to Egypt to save His life when He was a child because Herod wanted Him dead. She followed Jesus to the cross, stood at his feet as he died, knowing that his death was not the result of the evil one’s victory but of God’s victory. It was the sealing of his throne and his kingdom on earth and his ascension was His taking of His royal throne in heaven.

The Lord Jesus does, in fact, listen to Mary’s intercession and he will not refuse her because she is perfect. She is holy. However, she also exposes the plots of the evil one to the Church, Christs’ kingdom on earth. She intercedes for the preservation of her Son’s kingdom, and she is heard, and her requests are granted.

If King Solomon honored his mother so highly as his queen, how much more can you imagine that Jesus Christ, the King of all Kings, honors his mother Mary, the Queen of all Queens. She is, indeed, the Queen of Heaven. St. John is granted a vision in the book of Revelation of Mary as Queen.

“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars…..She gave birth to a son, a male child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.” (Revelation 12:1,5)

There is no one else that image describes, nor can it describe, other than the Blessed Mother Mary. Christ is the male child destined to rule all nations. She is the one clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and with a crown. We see this description, in fact, in the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Many will argue the image of the tilma does not show Mary with a crown. However, that argument would be incorrect. The image originally did feature a 12-point crown on her head, but around 1887-1888 it was noticed the crown had disappeared. It was later discovered it was removed by a painter at the command of a clergyman.

It may be difficult for many non-Catholics to accept the truth of Mary as Queen of Heaven. In order to accept this teaching, one must recognize Mary has a greater role in the kingdom of heaven and salvation than just being the woman who gave birth to Jesus. She is, indeed, Queen and it is a Biblical teaching. For many, they are just not ready to accept that truth because in accepting it, the teaching of Mary as Queen of Heaven blows up a large portion of their ingrained theology. Nevertheless, it does not make it any less Biblical.